Hello Candy

I think it is about time to introduce the world to the new love of my life... my Yamaha electric motorbike, Candy! It is official, I have converted and I have become one with the people of China. Honestly, I am not sure how I have survived for nearly two years without a scooter, but now that I have one, there is no way I could live without one - we are inseparatable! It is an adventure, and it has definitely taken some getting used to - traffic in Shanghai is a rather chaotic but exciting (to say the very least), but braving it with my new wheels has given me a new found sense of freedom and a whole new outlook on life in Shanghai! My two roommates have the same bikes as well... James has an English flag bike and Michelle's is orange, while mine is Candy apple red :)  Yup, we have a bike gang! Amy is not quit ready to commit to a bike yet because she is a little scared, but she is brave enough to ride on the back of our bikes with us! 

I am already terrified that she will be stolen (a common occurrence with bikes around Shanghai), so I am taking extra precautions to keep her locked up tight... but let's be honest, if you know anything about my past relationships with motor vehicles, you could probably predict that I will in some form or another kill it long before someone has the opportunity to steal it. I am hoping that because Candy is electric, perhaps her chances of survival are higher than the average gas guzzler.

Unfortunately, someone has already defaced her by slashing my seat with a knife while it was parked outside a bar the other day (Michelle and James' bikes, too)... I was so sad. The only reason I can come up with that our bikes were vandalized (the only three Yamaha bikes) and none of the other 10 bikes in the parking was because of the dispute between China and Japan and the anti-Japanese protest going on in China currently. It is so unfortunate that some a-hole felt the need to slash our seats because we bough a [fake, I am sure] Yamaha from a Chinese company! Anyway, I at least should be thankful that it was just the seat and not something worse like the cords or wires! 

Please keep me in your prayers as I hit the open road...